


Atonement

by slaparoniandcheese



Category: Lego Ninjago, Ninjago - Fandom
Genre: (because im projecting sjdjfh), Cozy, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Romance, Zane and Pix have a difficult conversation but its ok, Zane has nightmares, Zane-centric as per usual but from Pix's perspective, and ptsd, but pixal loves her dumb boyf, i love both of these lego robots so much. they are babies, i really wish ao3 would let me double space so it didnt hurt my eyeballs :'), idk what else to tag, its p mild tho, p simple little fic, pix just likes making zane blush lmao, so cozy!!!, some slight suggestive stuff not really, what have i done to deserve this sdkjndkjf, why wont ao3 let me use paragraph breaks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2020-05-19 20:05:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19363366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/slaparoniandcheese/pseuds/slaparoniandcheese
Summary: Zane has nightmares.It's like 3 AM and Pixal is sick and tired of her boyfriend not coming to her when he clearly needs help.





	Atonement

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little domestic hurt/comfort fic! I <3 these two

Pixal grimaced as her eyes tugged open from the darkness of sleep, only for her vision to go bleary from the white light glaring at her from across the bed. She confusedly scanned her inner workings, wondering if there was an issue in her sensors, until a shift in the mattress reminded her that she wasn’t alone. “Zane?” She hastily closed the screens and her vision cleared.

A startled turn of the head and there he was, baby blues and all, sitting up on his side of the bed. 

“Sorry. I tried not to wake you up, but I did not realize how pervasive the light would be.” he explained. He cupped a handheld electric lantern in his lap. It was a tiny thing, simple, painted lilac with a small yellowish light. She had bought it for him a couple months back in case he ever felt down while she was away. 

But she was right there. 

Zane wiped his eyes and-

Oh.

Oh, she was going to kill him. But only after she kissed him.

Pixal pulled herself up and sat beside him. “Are you alright?” 

“Yes,” he assured, “I was just having a little trouble sleeping.”

She raised a brow. “Really? You didn’t, by chance… have a nightmare or anything?”

He looked up at her, seemingly snared somewhere between embarrassment and trepidation. “Am I really that obvious?” 

“A little, yeah.”

Zane groaned and laid back. 

She laughed and leaned in. “If it helps you feel any better, you are at a disadvantage.” He cocked his head in question, so she elaborated. “I lived in your head. You really don’t think I can see right through you?” she reproached playfully, and a faint blue blush tinged his cheeks. She almost went in to kiss him, but stopped herself and pulled away to regard him sternly. “Zane.” she began.

“Yes?” She felt him shift nervously under her gaze as he set the lantern aside, probably anticipating a long conversation.

“Why didn’t you come to me for help if you were scared? I was right there.” 

“I…” Zane’s voice wavered, and he cleared his throat. “I wasn’t that scared. It was a simple disruption - an anomaly, even.” 

Pixal felt her systems go hot with frustration. “If it was an anomaly, it would have happened once. It’s happened almost every night for months now!” She carefully considered where she was going with the conversation. “You’ve been nervous ever since… since Chen.” 

Zane winced at the name, and she felt a chill just saying it, but continued nonetheless. “It already hurts me to see you scared, but it hurts even more that I can’t trust you to come to me for help when you’re having a hard time.” She hesitated. 

“Sometimes I feel like you forget I’m even here.” she disclosed. 

“I-” He choked, and Pixal realized he was trying not to cry. She reacquainted with that familiar surge of protection she always experienced when he was hurt or upset. She reached out to comfort him but, to her surprise, he pulled away. 

He took a few seconds preparing himself, blinking rapidly and taking in trembling breaths. When he finally spoke, all he could get out was a timid “Sorry” before his lips began to wobble again. Pixal ran a thumb up and down the back of his hand soothingly. She didn’t mind. Zane always got emotional during… times like this, whatever they could be called. Not arguments, but… difficult conversations.

“It’s alright,” she soothed, “I know that was never your intention.”

Zane sat up abruptly. “It’s not alright!” he hiccuped. “I never wanted to make you to feel like that. I’m sorry I did.”

“I know, and thank you. I accept your apology, but-”

Zane’s eyes widened and Pixal couldn’t hold back a laugh. She loved this boy. She cupped his cheek and smiled at him lovingly. “I’m not going to yell at you or anything, dork.” she reassured, and he relaxed under her touch. “I was just going to ask why it’s so hard for you to come to me for help. I didn’t come across as insensitive or anything, did I?”

The blonde bit his lip in apprehension, but this time he didn’t pull away. “No, no, I just… didn’t want to bother you.” He admitted, wringing his hands anxiously. “You always protect me, and I’m never able to protect you. I feel useless, so to bother you over something like a dream seems… trivial.”

“Zane,” she began, “evaluate the situation logically. What is the absolute worst thing that could happen if you had a bad dream and woke me up?” 

“You’d be frustrated with me. And then you would leave.”

Pixal’s heart dropped. “Zane, babe.” She dried the corner of his eye with her thumb. “I’m not going to be mad at you, and I am certainly not going to leave. I like when you come to me for help, and I like protecting you. It isn’t a ‘bother’. It makes me feel like I have a purpose apart from calculating probabilities and greeting people at the door.” 

Zane paused uncertainly. “Really?” he asked. 

“Really.” She moved her hands from his face to the small of his back and kissed him. He kissed shyly back. 

What time…? Pixal twisted around to check the clock. 4:03. Still a couple hours until we have to wake up. She scooped up the lantern from beside Zane and stationed it on the dresser, leaving it dimmed slightly but serviceable nonetheless. 

“Let’s go to bed.” she whispered and laid back down. Zane followed her under the warmth of the covers and deposited his head gingerly on her chest. 

They remained in this position for the better part of an hour, watching the sun quietly rise and fill the window with soft blue light. Pixal held Zane and ran her fingers tenderly through his hair (gosh, she loved how soft his hair was) and he responded in full, caccooning himself in her arms and all but purring. It didn’t take long for her to notice his eyes drooping and his breaths growing slow and calm.

“You know what I like almost as much as keeping you safe?” 

Zane glanced mellowly in her direction. “What?” he yawned.

Pixal smiled. “Listening to the sounds you make when you get all nice and comfortable.” she teased, lowering her tone and tracing a finger down the back of his neck.

The boy shivered and squirmed, face blooming into a brilliant and somewhat startling shade of azure. He buried his face in the comforter and offered only a muffled “goodnight”, and Pixal chuckled. She planted an airy kiss on the nape of his neck and settled into her pillow.


End file.
